Sounding of a Distant Land
by Number9 Dream
Summary: "I can be anyone you want right now."
1. Every Time I look Around

So I suppose the facts need to be laid out at the outset, I do not own Digimon. I am notoriously AWFUL at finishing chaptered stories, but I figured I'd give it a shot.

I have been a fan of this pairing for a minute now and decided to throw my hat in here. Basically Matt has a disastrous tour in America and begins to rethink his current lifestyle. The first chapter is kinda depressing and short. It should take a bit of a lighter tone throughout though. Also I posted this before thoroughly checking for any grammatical mistakes, if only to force myself to actually follow through with this story. Anyways. Enjoy.

Sounding of a Distant Land Chapter One : Every time I look around.

Matt tried his best to keep his eyes open as he slowly made his way through the airport. Had he ever felt so dejected in his life? How could everything have gone so wrong? This should've been what he needed to finally break in. He could hardly bare thinking about what to do next. He just wanted to be home and crawl into bed, and never come out. Unfortunately he had to think of a way to recover, and quickly, or he would lose his grip on everything.

He waited patiently at the luggage carousel as one passenger after another retrieved their belongings. He continued to stare at the mouth of the device, praying that the next bag would be his. Perhaps it was some sort of cosmic law that whoever is in the biggest hurry on a flight must wait the longest for their luggage. So he waited until he was the only person left from the flight, and then he decided to wait until the last suitcase had left the carousel, maybe somebody accidentally grabbed his, it'd only be a minute now until they realized their mistake and come back to retrieve their bag. So he continued waiting, staring at the lone suitcase making its way round and round with no abandon. Soon enough, a new crowd had built around with passengers from the next flight, and the carousel began filling back up with their bags.

"Is this a joke?" he asked himself aloud. It took all the energy he had left to keep himself from screaming.

After filing a report with the airline, who assured him his bag would turn up and apologized for the inconvenience, he worked his way outside. And for the first bit of luck he had all night there was a taxi seemingly awaiting his arrival. He slumped in the back seat and after giving the driver his destination, he decided to use the time to get a little sleep before he had to get settled back in at home.

As he rested his head on his luggage, he tried to break his thoughts away from his trip, to no avail. The actions just repeated themselves, seemingly stuck on a loop. The driver repeatedly tried to strike up conversations, Matt didn't want to be rude, but continued to ignore his attempts.

"Are you kidding me!" Matt yelled frustrated as he struggled to get the padlock of his studio apartment to unlatch. By the time he got the door open he was ready to cry. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.

He set his keys on the counter and saw his guitar cases and backpack next to his bed. Seeing them there Matt let out a sigh of relief, 'At least everyone else got home safe'. He worked his way across the room and collapsed on his bed. His body was so tired all he could do was let the silence in the room take over him. But as he laid there he could feel the throbbing in his head slowly working its way back.

A shower.

That's what he needed right now. He just needed to relax a bit before he did anything. He pulled himself out of bed and grabbed a towel. As he began undressing he noticed how much of a toll the last 3 weeks had taken on his body. He looked thin, all the muscles that had been previously, seemed to have melted away. His eyes seemed to be sagging, being pulled down by the bags currently under his eyes. He needed to shave, his chin and upper lip were littered with month old stubble and combined with his greasy hair it was truly a shameful sight.

This had to be the best shower he had ever taken in his life. The water seemed to be washing away some of the burdens he had been carrying around with him. In America he rarely had access to proper shower facilities. The only time on the entire tour he had a nice shower was his first night after landing in San Francisco, the band had stayed with one of his cousins. That first night had fooled him and, everyone else in the band, into thinking that this was going to be just like when they toured in Japan.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his doorbell ringing.

'Damn I was really enjoying this' Matt thought as he turned off the water. "I'll be there in just a minute." He yelled out from the shower. He grabbed his towel and quickly dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist.

"Sorry I was in the shower…" Matt said as he cracked open the door careful to hide himself behind it. "Tai? What are you doing here?" Matt said as he opening the door welcoming his friend inside.

"What are you doing here? That's what I get after not hearing from you for almost a month? That hurts man. Really it does." Tai joked he shook Matt's hand and made his way inside. "No, everyone was getting kind of worried about you, since you were supposed to be home yesterday and weren't answering anyone's calls. So I decided I needed to come over and check on you…If only for everyone else s peace of mind."

"Sorry about that, my phone was stolen about a week ago and everything has just been really crazy." Yelled from his room quickly dressing himself.

"That sucks man. Well how was everything else in America? Are you guys rock stars over there too? Don't tell me you're moving?" Tai laughed helping himself to a glass of Pepsi as Matt rejoined him in the kitchen.

"Well…things didn't go quite as we would've hoped, there's no need to fear us ever going back." Matt sarcastically chuckled as he set a glass down for Tai to fill.

"That bad?" Matt just shook his head as he drank his Pepsi.

"Worse."

"Well look on the bright side. You're back home, and you can put all this behind you. How about we start putting it behind you with some pizza?" Tai smiled wide with the offer, "Looks like you've lost a little weight. I think we need to fatten you up." Tai held his arms as far apart as he could and bloated his cheeks.

Matt just gave him an awkward stare.

"Fine, but the offer stands." Tai shrugged his shoulders as Matt took a seat on the couch.

Tai sighed as he grabbed his keys, "Alright, I'm gonna get going. I'm heading over to Sor's, you're free to come if you'd like."

Matt held up his hand, "I'm alright. Bed sounds pretty good about now."

Any comments/suggestions are very much welcome and appreciated.


	2. Four On The Floor

Matt struggled to open his eyes; none of the pathways in his head seemed to connect. His labored breathing echoed throughout his body. He finally worked his eyes open, the world outside was beyond fuzzy; he tried blinking to assist the adjustment. The clearer the images became, the more the light expanded the immense pressure in his head. He resigned to just closing his eyes and laying still for the time being.

'What happened last night?' he wondered to himself. He rubbed his head hoping he could relieve some of the pressure. Shielding his eyes he sluggishly began surveying his surroundings.' A stickered dresser and yellow walls, are those butterflies on the wall? Where the hell was he?'

It took quite a bit of effort to sit up, especially with the pink, flower plastered comforter further confusing him. He continued searching the room until he saw a picture standing on the bedside table near him. 'Oh, well that's a relief.' He relaxed a bit seeing the photo of Kari surrounded by the rest of the group.

The relaxation was short lived however, as he was reminded of the throbbing in his head. He also began to notice the weight of his limbs seemed to be greater than he had strength to move. 'I feel like I've said this before but, I really should stop drinking. Or just drinking so much.'

Tai and Sora were sitting at the kitchen counter laughing over a plate of pancakes and eggs as Matt stumbled into the living room.

"Morning beautiful." Tai laughed as Matt collapsed onto the couch.

"Please. - .Just shut up." Matt clenched his head with his eyes shut. The sound of Tai's laughter filled the room.

Matt opened his eyes to find Kari waiting with a glass of water and a bottle of Advil. "Take this, then come join us. There's plenty of food left."

"Thanks." Matt's stare lingered as she smiled and turned back to the kitchen, an observation that didn't escape a set of unassuming eyes at the counter.

They all continued eating once Matt took a seat next to Kari at the counter.

"So come on Matt, admit it. A night like last night was just what you needed to help you forget America." Tai boasted.

"Perhaps. Really, all it did was make me forget what happened last night."

Tai, Sora and Kari all shared a glance before breaking out in laughter while Matt continued eating his food seemingly unaware.

"So you don't remember anything last night?" Kari managed to ask between giggles.

"I remember a phone call and semi-veiled death threats, then being told food was for quitters for some reason. After that its all pretty blurry. And thanks for letting me use your bed, or, sorry for using your bed."

"It's alright, I wouldn't have offered if it bothered me." Kari smiled reassuringly.

"I'm sure you would have anyways, but thanks."

After breakfast Matt made himself comfortable and dozed off on the sofa, while Sora and Kari washed the dishes and Tai took a shower.

"Did you have a good time last night?" Sora asked handing Kari a dry plate.

"Absolutely, I haven't had that much fun in some time. I'm still surprised that Tai asked me to come with you guys." Kari put the plates away in the cupboard, then handed Sora the frying pan from the stove.

"He had to accept that you're growing up sooner or later." Sora laughed. "You really surprised me last night. You are quite the dancer." Sora nudged Kari with her elbow and smiled. "And with that dress you were wearing you had a few guys lined up." Kari froze for a moment as the blood rushed to her cheeks.

"And thanks for taking care of Matt; I swear we didn't ask you out to be a babysitter. I don't think we saw him getting that carried away."

"It's alright, it was good for him to blow off a little steam." Kari looked over in Matt's direction reassuringly.

"Hmmm, It was looking pretty steamy out there with the two of you." Sora said with a coy smile handing Kari the clean frying pan.

Kari cringed a bit at this, "Shhh, and I really don't know what you're talking about."

"Kari calm down, I saw you guys out there. It's not a big deal."

"I know it…isn't…besides you danced with him too." Kari tried to reason before refocusing on drying the pan as fast and as thoroughly as her arms would allow her.

"Yeah." Sora set the sponge down and shook her hands dry in the sink. "But there was a big difference between how we were dancing and how you guys were." A playful gaze fixated on the now bashful teen staring at the floor.

"I guess we both needed a night to blow off some steam." A hint of frustration could be found on Kari's face as she looked back up to Sora.

Sora abandoned her post at the sink and

"Well." Sora rested her arm comfortingly around Kari's shoulder. "If you need ever need to blow off steam again…You know you can always come to me."

"Actually." Sora wondered, "Do you have anything going on today?"

"I just have to call my academic advisor, but that should just take 20 minutes or so."

"Great! Well how about you give them a call while I give tweedle dumb over there a ride home. Then we can go all 'Girl Power' at the mall. Maybe see a movie."

"Well..." Kari hesitated.

"No wells, buts, or ifs. It'll be fun." Sora tried to put on her most convincing Mimi impersonation.

Mimi always had the power to convince Sora to do whatever she wanted. Now it was time for her to harness this power; and to use it for good, for once.

Sora's smile grew wider as she saw the wary look on Kari's face fade, and tried to contain the excitement as Kari exhaled in defeat. All these years Sora thought Mimi was taking advantage of her, turns out she was merely training her. 'Next time I see her….she's going down' Sora thought to herself as she made her way to the couch.

"Wake up you drunk." Sora yelled as she shook the unconscious Matt to no avail. "Come on, get up. Let's get you home." Matt groaned in frustration and tried to swat Sora's hand away.

Kari laughed to herself from the kitchen watching Sora struggle. She had always been a little jealous of how close Tai, Matt, and Sora had remained throughout the years. After watching the spectacle for a few minutes she finally decided to lend some assistance.

It took a minute but they were able to pry the slumbering Matt away from the couch, who, with a noise that could've been deciphered as a curse or thanks, slumped out the door to wait in Sora's car.

"Matt!"

Matt's eyes flickered open, lifting his head from the passenger window. In a daze he looked over to find Sora staring straight ahead with an annoyed look on her face.

"Would you please answer your phone?" Sora pleaded eyes still fixated on the road.

Matt pulled the ringing phone out of his pocket and stared at the screen for a moment before turning off the screen and flipping the mute switch. He rested his head back against the window and listened to the sound of the traffic around him.

Sora glanced over at her heartbroken friend, desperately wanted to reach out to him. She knew he would come to her when he was ready, but seeing him hurt was almost too much to bear sometimes.

They continued the car ride in silence.

So, I swore to myself I'd actually finish this story and there must be some kind of cosmic presence testing me, as my computer crashed. Also, because of that, this chapter is WILDLY different then what I had planned on pursuing but I couldn't bring myself to rewrite the 4k+ chapter on my phone. Oh the wonders of Notepad for the Iphone. Seeing as how it was written on my phone there is a good chance there are grammatical mistakes and typos, sorry. Also I should've mentioned ages I had in mind, 18 for Kari and 21 for the other three. Anyhow please leave comments as some of them are very inspirational and that will be badly needed to continue this on my phone.


	3. The Simple Life

Woohoo A third chapter. Any complains will be left null and void considering this was once again typed in a drunken stupor on my phone.

Sounding of A Distant Land Chapter 3: The Simple Life

The lights were just present enough to make out the face of the person next to you. When aided by the music surging through her body, and the heat of the singular mass of people, it created an almost surreal environment that was too much for her to bear at this moment. She had to get out. Unsure of the direction she was heading, she pushed her way onward through a sea of people acting as coral as the music washed over them. The longer it took the more her anxiety continued to grow. Each step she took felt like 10, her breathing was labored and speeding up. Just beyond their shoulders she could see the lights surrounding the bar, she was almost free.

She felt someone grab her wrist, and pull her back in. She found herself pressed against his chest as she felt his arms wrap around her waist. She wanted to struggle, and she wanted to run, but his scent resonated inside her. It relaxed her. She brought her arms up from his chest and slid them behind his neck. With neither of them looking to each other for permission they joined the others letting the music play puppet master. As the beat picked up she turned around, their bodies now contoured together as one. His every breath ran across the sweat building along the nape of her neck. His hands seemed to melt into her body, she was unsure of where they currently resided. She leaned her head back against his shoulder and glimpsed back at his face.

She was unsure of how long they danced together before a woman cut in between them. She headed for the bar trying to shake off the disappointment and the sudden empty feeling in her chest.

"Having a good time?" she heard from behind her as she took a seat at the bar. Looking over she was comforted to find her brother taking the seat next to her.

"Absolutely" She smiled. He returned it with a goofy smile of his own and turned to wave down the bartender. She turned to look back to the dance floor hoping to catch sight of the woman dancing in her stead. "What can I get for you guys?"

"What do you usually order?" Tai asked the bartender.

"Vodka tonic."

"Ok we'll get one of those, a Jack and coke, and a…." He paused looking over to his sister.

"Cranberry and Vodka."

"Really? Well that'll do it for now." Tai smiled as the bartender began working on their order.

"Cranberry and Vodka? Could you get anymore girly? I thought I had taught you better than that." He feigned disappointment shaking his head.

"You know I'm a girl right…So I like girl things. It's the nature of the beast I'm afraid." She chuckled.

"Kari, I'm very well aware of your current disposition and I'm just working to help you remedy the situation." The stern look on his face gave her pause.

"You're in college for two years and now you think you've outgrown your stupidity. You might fool everyone else, but you'll always be an idiot to me."

"I love you too." Their laughter interrupted by the return of the bartender.

"Here we are that'll be 16."

"Wonderful. This is for you" He paused pushing the tonic to the bartender. "And this is for you as well." Tai smiled handing him a twenty.

"Cheers everyone."

The bartender downed his drink and thanked Tai before moving on help other customers.

"Well that was generous." Kari looked surprised.

"Maybe, but I have an ulterior motive. See how busy this place is now. Later it'll be even worse it's gonna be a nightmare to get a drink. But not for us. He's gonna see us and we're gonna get server right away. He knows we'll take care of him."

"Wow, that makes a lot of sense."

"It's just one of those things that you should be taught in school. Here's something else Mom and Dad might not tell you. There's nothing wrong with going after someone with money."

"You're just full of wisdom tonight Tai." Kari laughed.

"Seriously though, you think I'm dating Sora for the wonderful person she is? Nope I'm after the money. Now I know you're thinking, 'Tai, it's not like Sora has a lot of money.' And you might be right. But the money she does have. I'm after it." Tai gave her a knowing look before finishing off his drink.

"Thanks Tai." She smiled.

"No problem. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go get digging. I'll see you out there."

Laughter filled the hallways, at a level that would probably get them a talking to from the neighbors tomorrow, as Tai fidgeted with the keys struggling to keep his hand steady enough to open the pad lock.

"Come on you drunk, let's get a move on!" Matt yelled.

"Shhh! There's sleeping people trying to sleep." Tai turned and scolded Matt, who tried to contain himself before erupting in laughter. Tai threw his hands up in disgust, throwing the keys in the process. Matt began laughing harder joined in a chorus by Kari and Sora, who had grabbed the keys and was now unlocking the door herself.

"Voila! You may now enter." Sora smiled and took a step to the side allowing her friends to enter.

"You're too good for him Sora." Matt rested his hand on her shoulder shaking his head in shame.

"Yeah, you probably shouldnt give her any ideas." Kari agreed from inside the apartment much to the delight of the duo in the doorway.

"Wow Kari, coming from you, that kinda hurts." Tai was attempting to take off his shoes with a very hurt expression on his face.

Sora and Matt leisurely made their way inside, still in a fit of laughter.

"Ok, Matt, Sora and I will be in my parents room, so if you need anything, anything at all.."

"Ask Kari. He gets it. You're hilarious. Now let's go to bed." Sora pulled a dejected Tai into the bedroom of his vacationing parents. "Good night." she offered before closing the door.

"Thank God for Sora. I don't want to try to imagine what his life would be like without her." Kari smiled turning her gaze to Matt.

"Yeah." Matt's eyes lingered on her smile. His smile fading slightly.

"Are you alright?" Kari took a step closer, as he absently stepped in the opposite direction.

Matt stammered for a second, for the first time in a while finding himself at a loss for words. So she caught him looking at her smile? What was he freaking out about.

"I'm drunk." Matt stopped in his tracks, confusing himself even further. He felt stupid, but the sound of her laughter eased the burden.

She grabbed his hand and beckoned him to follow. "I know you are. So why don't you sleep in my bed tonight?"

Matt stopped in the doorway halting Kari along with him.

"It's ok. Really I can tub it." Kari just smiled releasing his hand.

"Well of course you can. But why don't you sleep in here and I'll sleep on the couch. This way. Nobody has to take the tub."

"Oh! I can sleep on the couch. It's not.."

"You're sleeping here." Kari interrupted. "You don't even fit on the couch. Now stop arguing with me and go to bed."

Matt's shoulders slouched in defeat and entered her room.

"I had a great time tonight." Kari whispered as she embraced Matt, who reluctantly wrapped his arms around her.

"I did too" he echoed back. Drawing a deep breath, "You look incredible tonight." he could feel her shifting, shaking her head in disagreement.

"I... Thank you." she looked up into his eyes. "You didn't look so bad tonight either."

She smiled briefly before he leaned over and pressed his lips against hers. She pulled him in as tightly against her as she could. As she closed her eyes, the intensity of the kiss grew, parting her lips allowing her tongue to venture out and explore Matt further.

Matt's hands caressed the small of her back, slowly working their way up. His kisses trailed down her neck as he began pulling the zipper of her dress.

"Matt." she pleaded. "Matt we can't do this." her hands trailed up along his back never loosening their grip.

"What's stopping us?" he moaned between kisses.

"You're my brothers best friend."

"I can be anyone you want right now." he whispered in her ear before gently biting.

"I wish that were true." she conceded pushing him away. "But right now, you're just a drunk friend."

She released herself from his arms and left the room without another word.

Post script authors note. I'm sorry that in the previous chapter I had any mention of Tai babying Kari, its a trite feature in these stories. Even ones that feature advanced ages.

Anyways here's to your continued support.

Please Leave me some feedback, if only for the sake of my health. There are healthier ways of seeking inspiration.

I haven't given up. I'm finishing this thing.


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